Sunday, 7 July 2013

Two Books and a Train: the Lindisfarne Gospels in Durham

Last week Durham’s Lindisfarne Gospels exhibition opened to
the public. I have already visited four times. It would need a twice-daily
visit to do justice to it. The Famous Book is the centrepiece of an array of marvellous
books, manuscripts, sculptures and treasures that shed light on the Gospels and
the world in which they were created. Will we ever see so many Saxon gospel
books in the same place?And Cuthbert’s
cross, ring and personal gospel book of St John in the same room as the Gospel
written in his honour? Come and see for yourself. It’s open all summer, till 30
September. I never use this phrase lightly, but it is not to be missed.

One of the things ‘not to be missed’ is the location of the
exhibition. We can see the Lindisfarne Gospels at the British Library in London
where it will not cost us a penny. But that is not the same as seeing it on the
Durham peninsula, in the shadow of the Cathedral that not only contains but is Cuthbert’s shrine. His coffined body,
together with the Gospels, were the most precious objects the Lindisfarne
community possessed. When they left their island, they carried them round the
north of England until finally arriving in Durham in 995.Here they stayed, in each other’s company,
until irrevocably parted at the Reformation. Yet they belong together and should never have been separated. We have Henry VIII and the dissolution of the monasteries to thank for that. This
summer gives us the remarkable opportunity to bring the Gospels back ‘home’ not just geographically but culturally, intellectually and above
all, spiritually, near St Cuthbert in his very own place. The message to those visiting the exhibition is simple. You've seen the Book; now come and see the shrine of the man for whom this huge labour of love was created, whose place is the Cathedral itself. For me, visiting this exhibition has been an emotional and spiritual experience. To re-learn the history of how Saxon England embraced Christianity is one thing. To see and enjoy some the highest achievements of 'Northumbria's Golden Age' is deeply satisfying. But what is so memorable about Durham 2013 is how it witnesses to the remarkable devotion of our forebears: Cuthbert and so many other native saints and their communities. It's a cliché to put it like this, but I think I have glimpsed the 'gospel' in the Gospels in a new and, I want to say, compelling way. The exhibition is not only celebration and interpretation. It is evangelism.

There have been other events this week that have celebrated
the Gospels in Durham. Here are just two. On Wednesday, on
the platform at Newcastle Central Station, we named and dedicated a locomotive ‘Durham
Cathedral’. (For those who like to know, it’s a class 91 East Coast electric
91114.)During the summer, it will also
carry imagery from the Lindisfarne Gospels and invite people up and down the East
Coast Main Line to come to Durham and see the book for themselves.In addition to the name, the loco also has a silhouette
of the Cathedral as seen from the railway viaduct which is also depicted. So
here’s another way in which Cathedral and Gospels are linked. You never saw a happier
dean than when I was presented with my own replica of the large (and heavy)
nameplate that now adorns ‘our’ engine. My best thanks to East Coast, Stephen Sorby, railway chaplain, and many others for a great
partnership that I am sure will continue in the future.

The second event was to launch my new book Landscapes of Faith during the week.This too is published to celebrate the
Lindisfarne Gospels in Durham. Like the exhibition, my book is a celebration of the rich
heritage of Christianity in North East England. I blogged about it last week, so I’ll say no more here
except to thank the team who worked so hard on it, especially Third Millennium for producing a large and beautiful book that is
a joy to handle, even though I say so myself. And thanks to the large number of friends from north and south
of Tyne who offered encouragement by coming to the launch. I am doing a book-signing in the shop at Alnwick Garden on Friday 12 July from 1230-1400 if you happen to be in the area.

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About Me

Lives in retirement in Northumberland. Was Dean of Durham 2003-2015; before that, in cathedral and parish ministry, and in theological education.
Ponders and writes on faith, society, the North East, arts, books, Europe and anything else that intrigues.
My Durham Cathedral blog to 2015: http://decanalwoolgatherer.blogspot.co.uk.
This Northern Woolgatherer blog from 2015: http://northernwoolgatherer.blogspot.co.uk.
My archive of sermons and addresses: http://michaelstalks.blogspot.com.
Tweets at @sadgrovem.